EO A Year in Review 2024

In 1963, as the final concrete was poured for I-81 in Abingdon, another foundation was laid: EO, then known as the United Fund of Washington County, was founded. Both represented doors to progress, opening our region to new possibilities. Sixty years later, we took another bold step. In 2024, we restructured into two independent nonprofits - United Way of Southwest Virginia and EO - each positioned to expand its impact as a critical community partner. Because community is at the heart of everything we do, we invited over 200 local voices - parents, partners, and leaders - to help shape our future. Through listening sessions and collaboration, one name emerged: EO. Latin for “GO,” it represents action, momentum, and the spark of change. In 2024, we proudly opened the EO Regional Workforce and Child Development Hub (EO Hub) - a transformational project that reimagined a former Kmart as an 87,000-square-foot center for economic and workforce innovation. Designed to bridge critical gaps in the regional economic ecosystem, the EO Hub has not only become a model for workforce participation and talent development locally but has also gained national attention as an innovative public-private partnership. Communities across the country are looking to EO as a blueprint for preparing emerging talent and strengthening economic opportunity.

Today, EO is more than a name. It is a movement—where tradition and innovation thrive together, and where people and communities flourish.

Through early childhood education, workforce innovation, and thriving communities, we are opening doors so that future generations can meet the demands of a rapidly evolving world and prosper.

With your support, every initiative, every partnership, and every life we touch is another door opened to a brighter tomorrow.

Travis Staton CEO + President, EO

Heather Nicholson Chair of the Board of Directors, EO

Abingdon Office 300 Towne Centre Dr. Suite 20 Abingdon, VA 24210

Radford Office 221 West Main St. Radford, VA 24141